Pros And Cons Of The Automatic Plate Recognition System

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Advancing technology is one of the most important factors leading to police officers, among other types of law enforcement, being able to more quickly, and safely, apprehend a criminal. One of these technologies is that of the Automatic License Plate Recognition system, otherwise referred to as the ALPR. According to Inspector Norm Gaumont and Constable Dave Babineau “ALPR was developed in 1992 at Cambridge University in the United Kingdom in response to terrorism…The United Kingdom continues to lead the way when it comes to the use of ALPR technology”. The Automatic License Plate Recognition system operates through two cameras which can be mounted on police cars, vans, stoplights or other stationary objects. These cameras have infrared illuminators in order to be able to capture images in any kind of light or even in no light at all. The cameras use optical character recognition in order to be able to identify a license plate and record the numbers and letters. The date, time, and location of the vehicle are recorded along with the license plate. The cameras can also capture a vehicle’s make, model, …show more content…

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) states that the information being collected on every motorist can be kept for an indefinite amount of time, depending on the specific state’s laws, and are rarely subject to restrictions regarding privacy rights. The ACLU acknowledges the usefulness of the ALPR but only if subject to five restrictions: license plate readers should be used by law enforcement agencies only, these agencies should be required to report and not allowed to share information, the government should not store data pertaining to innocent people, and finally, people should be allowed to inquire about data stored for any vehicle in their

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